7 Tight Lines Bulletin - Spring 2018 GulpSW_3.75x5.indd 1 2/8/11 2:39 PM Another classic fish mount has landed at the West Palm Beach Fishing Club. A large skin mounted tarpon is the latest addition to the club’s impressive collection. The fish was caught by the late Howard Elkins and is a treasured part of angling lore. Many club members (of a certain age) will remember Mr. Elkins as the owner of the old Outdoor Store (later Outdoor Sports World) located on Dixie highway in West Palm Beach in a buidling that was formerly Margret Ann's Grocery Store. For over 50 years the Outdoor Store was a place where you could find fishing tackle, camping gear, guns, canoes, hardware and just about anything else needed for the outdoors. Inven- tory filled every square inch of available display space in the building. "It really was a one stop shop. You could buy toys, gifts, hardware and even an Evinrude Buc- caneer outboard," recalled Howard's son in law Bill Copland, who used to work at the store. "Back then ev- erybody knew everybody. I think every teacher, lawyer and doctor in town worked in the store at one time or another when they were young. We used to play football in front of the store right on Dixie Highway on Sunday mornings and we wouldn't see a car until ten o'clock. It was a really special time growing up. Running the store was a true family adventure." More than a few good fish stories were told in the store as well and the Elkins family could spin a yarn as good as any of their loyal customers. One of those fish tales involved the tarpon that now hangs inside the WPBFC's historic clubhouse. For most of its existence the scaly mount adorned the north wall of the Outdoor Store. As the story goes, Mr. Elkins was entered in the 22nd an- nual Sarasota County International Tarpon Tournament, which ran May 15 through July 31st. "Before moving to West Palm Beach dad had a tackle shop in Sarasota right on Main Street. Ringling Brothers Circus would parade all the animals right by the store," remembered Howard's daughter Sandy Copland. The year was 1952 and tarpon tournaments were a big deal on Florida’s South West Coast. Prizes that were up for grabs in the annual Sarasota event included ‘glass’ rods, Penn reels, Zippo lighters and spe- cial lapel button awards made of bronze, silver and gold, which were awarded based upon minimum weights. A gold pin was presented to anglers who caught a tarpon of 100 pounds or more. Hundreds of anglers fished the event… it was Howard Elkins who won it. Howard’s winning fish Elkins Tarpon Mount Comes with a Story & Memories Howard (r) and a young Jack Elkins look in awe at the award winning tarpon. tipped the scales at 152 pounds and earned him the tournament's top prize, a brand new Chrysler ‘Woody’ station wagon! He also was able to take possession of the tournament's coveted Palmer Tro- phy for one year. Now that’s a fish story! Thank you to our dear friends at Fish-N-Stik, Sandy and Bill Copland, for donating such a special mount and sharing this wonderful fish story. The WPBFC helps remember Howard each year by supporting the annual Howard Elkins Memorial Fish- ing Clinic coordinated by the Palm Beach County Airboat & Halftrack Conservation Club.